This invention relates to the field of water purification and, more particularly, a method and apparatus for purifying and treating water by passing a water stream through a polarizing magnetic field and introducing mineral ions into the stream.
It has become well-known that untreated tap water can cause a variety of problems to a homeowner's water pipes as well as to the health of the occupants themselves. Although water initially treated at city water facilities is generally potable, the level of purity desired by an increasing number of consumers is often not achieved. Undesirable levels of algae and/or bacteria are still present in singly treated tap water. An additional problem faced by homeowners is the scaling that occurs within water pipes when mineral deposits precipitate out of a water stream.
Various methods and devices have been proposed in the prior art to purify water or reduce the problem of scaling. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,057,198 to Bochkarev, an electrochemical treatment is proposed which preliminarily softens water by first passing water through a cathode chamber to produce a catholyte from which precipitating hardness salts are separated. The stream is then passed through an anode chamber to produce a final anolyte product. U.S. Pat. No. 4,605,498 to Kulish teaches that exposing a liquid to a predominately south pole oriented magnetic field also promotes descaling. Another water treatment method involves adding chemicals such as lime to the water to facilitate filtration of hardness salts. Yet another method involves passing the water stream through a tank of sodium-filled beads which absorb hard minerals, replacing the minerals with high levels of sodium. Purification methods suitable for swimming pools are also known which pass water over electrodes which release copper and silver ions into the water to cooperatively destroy algae and bacteria.
Although assumably effective to either reduce scaling or purify water, such known devices fail to provide a simple, efficient, and economical option for complete home water treatment. Devices which require chemicals for their function suffer from the inconvenience of continuous maintenance and the expense of replenishment. Also, water softening techniques, while assumably promoting descaling, have the effect of removing minerals from the water that are essential to good health. A need still exists for a water treatment system suitable for inline home use that purifies water without the addition of chemicals while simultaneously promoting descaling without removing beneficial minerals.